A sport in handcuffs

Pic: Alberto Contador in the Liberty Seguros-Wurth kit. Is he being punished till today for having once been decked in those colours?

The World Road Championships ended two weekends ago, Giro di Lombardia comes up soon to finish off the 2007-2008 season, while in Asia the new 2008-2009 season already began with the Tour Milad de Nour in Iran during Hari Raya.

I guess we could take a little look back on the season and the most prfound mystery that gripped the cycling world this year.

On the world stage, I can't help but wonder how politics ruled cycling over sensibility and fairplay.

How else could the best team in the world, have not raced in the world's biggest race? Astana and Alberto Contador were not present in the Tour de France for reasons known only to the ASO, seriously.

That, to me, obliterated all sporting sense, even if I personally have a rather strong feeling towards the effect of doping problems towards the sport.

Tour de France director Christian Preudhomme announced two months prior to the start of the Tour: "We have on our list, the 20 best teams in the world that will race in this year's Tour." Yea, right!

The winner of the last Tour (Contador), who was also the best among the line of Spaniards, was not there, as he's with Astana, who weren't welcome. So, was last year's third placed man Levi Leipheimer and Andreas Kloden, who'd been on the podium several times and fifth last year (haven't re-checked that, but I think I remember correctly. Will update soon.)

Why were Astana punished when you have clear, well-written rules about the procedures and penalties for doping offences. None of the current Astana team, unless I'm very much mistaken, have tested positive for anything.

All that happened was, Alexandre Vinokourov and shortly later Andrey Kashechkin, the leaders of the previous Astana team, testing positive for EPO during last year's Tour. But it isn't the same team anymore, just the same sponsors, Astana. Is Preudhomme trying to drive Astana out of cycling sponsorship? There are no regulations to punish sponsors for previously backing tainted riders.

In any case, Vino and Kash are serving their doping bans. So is their teammate Matthias Kessler who got busted for testosterone prior to the 07 Tour. They are paying the price for their mistakes. What else do you want to do? Shoot them?

Astana pumped their money into a Vino-led squad of powerful riders after the fall of Liberty Seguros. That was an evolution from the super teams of that started of in the era of Manolo Saiz's ONCE squads, which probably turned out not to be so super.

Roberto Heras got the ball rolling when he got busted for EPO after winning the 2005 Vuelta a Espana, then riding for Manolo's Liberty Seguros-Wurth. that evolved into the Operacion Puerto that gave a certain Dr. Eufemiano Fuentes global recognition and fame as a blood doping expert. American insurance giants Liberty pulled out their sponsorship from Manolo's Active Bay management and in came Astana to save fellow countryman Vino, who was gonna take the Kazakh flag to the top of the world. Then it changed to Astana-Wurth (I still have a team sweater from them, thanks to Ng Yong Li). Tony Rominger came in at some point, to take over from Pablo Anton, who also got busted (if I remember correctly). Then came the big bust while Vino was doing some heroics in taking the maillot jaune with a collection of bandages keeping his body together. The 2007 Tour was won by the rider who was supposed to go for the maillot blanc (young riders' jersey) Contador (then riding for Discovery Channel, under Bruyneel), after Astana were booted out of the Tour. that was a dirty Astana team, but still all Astana the Kazakh conglomerate did, was put their money into the team.

Astana took their money out of anything to do with the Manolo regime or Fuentes-related crap, the whole team was changed and Johan Bruyneel was later brought in to take charge. Discovery Channel folded, so Contador was without a team. Not for long because Bruyneel was always ready to take his best rider.

This team, most of us believe, has nothing whatsoever to do with the Astana-Wurth squad that succeeded Liberty Seguros. Neither has any on its roster tested positive. They've even invested in a more elaborate independent anti-doping programme run by Dr. Rasmus Damsgaard, which sees their riders going through more off-competition tests than probably any athlete on earth!

Can you imagine a bunch of Manchester United or Liverpool players getting busted for dope and the managers for administering it, then the whole two teams not being allowed to play in the EPL anymore despite a wholesale change in management? This is worse. This is like AIG or Carlsberg not being allowed to put their logos on any football jersey anymore. That is all Astana is doing!!

This can only happen in cycling because of a weak UCI and more powerful Amaury Sports Organisation (ASO), who not only organise their own race, but make their own rules for cycling as well. They are able to replace not only the UCI, but Wada and the IOC as well!

Look at what the 25-year old Contador has done. Taken off from last year's Tour win, and when finding out he was not gonna go for a successive Tour win, took the Giro d'Italia win and the Vuelta as well. First rider since Eddy Merckx to do all three within a year and the first since Marco Pantani to take two Grand Tours in the same year.

All I'm saying is, if the ASO are so powerful, they should be able to catch the cheats. They should be able to have enough intelligence to make recommendations on improvements to the anti-doping code and also help everyone in cycling, not just themselves, to carry out implementation of what they feel are sufficient anti-doping efforts.

Right now, they know they've got the biggest, most important race in the world under their ownership, so they're holding everybody by the balls, while making tons of money for themselves. All that, while also trying to project themselves as anti-doping warlords.

I'm also saying I'm against doping in any sport. But all you can do is catch the cheats and punish them. If you can't catch them, don't just take action based on your own assumptions.

If you can't catch them please allow the billions of cycling fans around the world, who are more important to the sport than the ASO, to enjoy a good race with the best riders in the world. Otherwise, it would seriously seem like you're saying:"Excuse me, you're not under arrest, but can we please handcuff you."